Court blow to Dutch

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- Te STATEMENTS of unequivocal support for the NGA's stand THIS week has seen a dramatic change in the fortunes of the Dutch action against the proposed 32% cut in the salaries of public sector workers and in welfare benefits.

Using a tactic already tried successfully in this month-long dispute, the Dutch centre-right coalition government has Setiously weakened the strike movement by the use of courts to declare strikes illegal.

The latest court decision was directed against post office workers who were told that it was illegal for them to use strike action while the unions and government • were engaged in talks aimed at resolving the dispute. As a result, most of the action by the post workers was halted.

As the Dutch socialist paper Class Struggle pointed out, it is a crazy state of affairs. Post office workers will strike against the government and take no notice of government ministers, yet will listen to the declarations of a judge who is only an agent for the same interests as the government.

This is a serious blow to the action against the government's attempts to impose an austerity programme on the Dutch working class.

The government has scored another victory this week. It has managed to put a divide between the Christian' right-wing unions and the 'Socialist' unions. The Christian CNV has called for an end to the work-to-rule by railworkers - the first time they have taken action since 1903 - arguing that the public must not be antagonised.

The signs are that the movement against the cuts is collapsing rapidly, with the possibility of a general strike further and further away. Financial 'experts' have this week been more and more confident about the future of the Dutch economy.

There are murmurs that a settlement could be reached this week. The 'Christian' unions have already stated that they are prepared to make further concessions. possibly involving a shorter work ing week (but the same amount of work to be done).

The 'Socialist' FNV, on the other hand, have said that they step up action if there is no sign. of compromise from the civil servIce minister Koos kietkerk. But 1 seems an empty challenge. Th leadership of the PNV lacks the. determination to win, and indeed accept some cuts in living standards. Only one of the union leaders, De Schur, has talked in terms of class struggle.

There is still a possibility, small though it is, that the angry and more determined government workers in Amsterdam and Rotterdam and parts of northern Holland could yet provide the focus for a renewed. struggle against the proposed cuts.

But, far more likely, it seems as if the struggle will now be sold out either this week or at the beginning of next week.

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shares the government's view that the Dutch working class must